GFRC Online Auctions

 

The Connoisseur's Auction Sale Series

Mike's Seated Quarters - Part 2

and

Additional Lots

September 5 - 12, 2026

 

 

 

Welcome to the second GFRC 2.0 Online Auctions event. The lead consignment for this auction is the second part of Mike's Seated Quarter set that is ranked fourth all-time in the PCGS Registry. The Liberty Seated Quarter set is one of the most challenging silver sets to complete by date and mintmark with 108 coins needed. There are at least 40 coins in the set with populations of 500 or less in existence in any grade. A small fraction have been straight graded by the three major grading services. An even smaller amount has been endorsed by CAC. About 80% have been endorsed by CAC. Add in a ton of eye appeal and you get a group of coins that is extremely hard to duplicate. Darrell feels there are roughly 25-35 complete Liberty Seated Quarter sets that currently exist in any grade as a number of the rare 1870-CC, 1871-CC, and 1873-CC With Arrows quarters are with Carson City mint collectors. If you have been on the hunt for these rare and scarce dates, look no further. Here is your opportunity to acquire these coins. Mike has listed the highlights below, but there are a few more worth noting. The 1845 25c PCGS-AU55 CAC and 1851 25c PCGS-AU53 CAC have absolutely wonderful toning. The 1847-O 25c PCGS-XF40 CAC also has attractive color. For rarity, there is the 1856-S 25c PCGS-XF45 CAC, 1862-S 25c PCGS-AU53 CAC, and 1866 25c PCGS-MS62 CAC.

The additonal lots will be announced in the next few weeks when all the lots have arrived.

We will turn it back to Mike and let him talk about his journey collecting his set.

Parting with my Seated Liberty Quarter set was not an easy decision, but I felt the timing was right in 2026. It took many years to build the collection into what it is today. Along the way, the search for these coins became just as meaningful as the coins themselves. What follows is a little history of my collecting journey and some highlights from the set.

My coin collecting journey began when I was about nine years old. One day I found a partially filled Whitman folder of wheat cents in my parents’ closet. The excitement of filling the empty holes in the album for each date and mintmark quickly got me hooked. Before long, I had searched through every change jar in the house. Eventually I realized that the tougher dates would not come from pocket change. That meant a trip to a coin shop. That first visit opened my eyes to the many other series and denominations in U.S. coinage.

I collected coins through my younger years, but during my teenage years my interests moved elsewhere for a while. After college, once I started my first full-time job, I happened to be browsing eBay and began looking at Indian cents at auction. That was all it took to bring me back into the hobby. Within a few weeks I had finished my Indian Cent Dansco album and soon started collecting a new series every few months.

After a couple of years, I decided I wanted a bigger challenge. I studied the different denominations looking for the next series to pursue. Seated Liberty Quarters caught my attention because the TPG and CAC population numbers were much lower than most other series. I noticed how rarely many of the dates appeared at auction. The more I studied them, the more I realized how rare many of these coins truly were. I knew collecting Seated Quarters would take years to complete a date and mintmark set and decided to take on the challenge.

From that point on, I made a habit of checking auctions, searching dealer websites, and attending coin shows whenever I could. I was always looking for Seated Quarters, especially the many rare dates in the series. Along the way, I met several other collectors who shared the same interest. Over time, I also developed a better eye for quality. I learned to stay away from problem coins and focus on pieces with original surfaces.

As the collection grew, eye appeal became the most important factor. Price became less important than finding coins that truly stood out. One thing learned over time is that great coins will bring strong prices, and they are the best long-term investments.

After years of searching and upgrading, I was finally able to complete my 108-coin Seated Liberty Quarter date and mintmark set in May of 2017. By that point I had gained a deep appreciation for how rare many of these coins really are. After completing the set, I continued working to improve it by upgrading coins both in grade and in quality. Over the years, I sold duplicates to help fund new additions.

Many of my Seated Quarters were bought and sold through Gerry Fortin Rare Coins and can still be found in their archives today. GFRC has long been one of the key sources for high-quality Seated coinage. When it came time to sell my collection, it was an easy decision to work with them. Gerry, Darrell, and Matt are true professionals and well respected in the numismatic community.

CAC approval also became more important to me over the years. Today the collection stands at close to 80% CAC approved. Several of the dates in the set have CAC populations of twenty coins or fewer. In many cases, finding a CAC example requires years of patience.

Some of my favorite coins in the set are the Carson City quarters, especially the early dates. These are the rarest coins in the series and are very difficult to find with original, problem-free surfaces. Many of the San Francisco mint quarters are also very challenging to locate, especially the 1872-S, 1871-S, 1867-S, 1866-S, and 1860-S. These coins have very low TPG and CAC populations that rival the early Carson City issues. The New Orleans mint coins may not always be as rare as the Carson City and San Francisco issues, but many of them have excellent eye appeal. One of my personal favorites is the 1855-O. In my opinion, it is the most underrated date in the series. Finding one in high grade with CAC approval is extremely difficult. I was fortunate to purchase my example, graded CACG MS-63, from a dealer’s website in July 2025. I happened to see the listing soon after it appeared and knew I had to buy it immediately before someone else would. Several collectors made offers after the purchase, but at the time I was not ready to let it go so soon.

Some of the highlights in the 2nd auction include:

• 1849 PCGS MS 64 CAC – Lustrous condition census coin. PCGS has only graded 2 coins higher.

• 1849-O PCGS XF 40 – Key New Orleans date with colorful toning that gives it excellent eye appeal.

• 1850-O PCGS MS 63 CAC – Tough to find in original Mint State. This coin ranks in the top 10 Condition Census.

• 1857-O PCGS MS 63 CAC – Eye appealing New Orleans coin with only 5 CAC certified in all uncirculated grades.

• 1859-S PCGS VF 30 CAC – Tough San Francisco date, nice CAC original coin. CAC has only certified 4 coins in higher grades.

• 1861-S PCGS XF 40 CAC – Nice original coin with CAC approval. Very difficult to find in XF grades and above.

• 1867 PCGS MS 63 CAC – Hard to find Philadelphia date in an OGH and CAC stickered. This exact coin once sold at auction for $86,250!

• 1867-S PCGS VF 30 CAC – Very tough San Francisco date that's extremely difficult to find with CAC approval. CAC sticker population is minuscule with only 13 total in all grades.

• 1870-CC PCGS VG 10 CAC – Key Carson City date that’s tough to find in a nice original, problem free grade let alone with CAC approval.

• 1875-CC PCGS MS 64 CAC – Desirable Carson City date in an OGH with CAC sticker.

• 1878-S PCGS MS 64 CAC – Tough date with a CAC sticker population of only 17.

Thank you for your interest in my Seated Quarter collection. I hope these coins bring as much enjoyment and satisfaction to their new owners as they did to me. Building this collection was a long journey that took many years of searching and waiting for the right coins to appear. While parting with the set is bittersweet, I am happy to share this opportunity with other passionate Seated Quarter collectors. I hope the next owners enjoy these coins as much as I have.

Mike

Good luck to all who wish to take a shot at these premium offerings. Verbal descriptions are always available via phone call. Matt and Darrell are available throughout the day to discuss these coins. Please don't be bashful for scheduling an appointment via email or registering if new to GFRC Online Auctions.

 

 

GFRC Online Auctions - PDF Catalog Archives

 

Greetings and welcome to GFRC No Buyer's Fee Auction Sales portal. Our online auction application takes a simplified approach for conducting noteworthy auctions without buyer's fees. The one commission rate approach for integrated auction and price list sales leads to a carefree and fun buying and selling event.

About GFRC

GFRC has rapidly grown as a leading retailer of quality Early Silver Type, U.S. Gold, and now expanding into early 20th Century denominations. Our business model is consignment centric supporting more than 250 consignors who actively conduct collection duplicate divestments. Selling CAC approved coins is our primary mission and specialty.

Founded during early 2014, GFRC has been in continuous operation since that time. Our website previously garnered some of the highest Alexa.com industry rankings due to a dedicated numismatic community that constantly visits the many online applications. The Daily Blog is the go to link for daily new purchases and auction information. Unlike other smaller dealers, we offer a complete Sales and Auction Archive for complete transparency. The GFRC Open Set Registry provides collectors with a friendly venue for posting their collections. The GFRC Gallery showcases the past and present offerings of our top consignors.

GFRC is a well known fixture on the national coin show circuit. We exhibit at Whitman Baltimore, Winter FUN, Central States, and the Summer ANA World's Fair of Money.

 

The Unique GFRC Integrated Service Approach

With the introduction of the GFRC's Online Auction service, clients have multiple sale approaches for their consigned coins.

- Regular Fixed Priced List Sales

- Online Auction Sales (Minimum consignment lot size and/or value requirement)

- A lot not selling at its Online Auction reserve price will automatically post to the price list at the reserve price.

- GFRC will not return consigned lots that do not meet reserves at Online Auctions due to the standard four month minimum consignment length requirement as part of GFRC regular policy. Requests for earlier returns of auction lots will be subject to 5% handling fee.

 

Online Auction Sale Terms & Conditions

GFRC auction sale Terms and Conditions are available by clicking here or the Terms & Conditions banner located at the top of this page. Your GFRC auction experience will be improved if carefully reading through all Terms & Conditions. Most potential questions, concerning the GFRC automated bidding application, will be answered if bidders take the time to read all facets of the Terms & Conditions.

 

The Bidding Process Using the GFRC's Online Auction Application

Online Auctions and the bidding process will be conducted through an automated bidding application specially developed for the GFRC portal. Auctions will be posted and conducted via auction table presentation and located at 212collectibles.com/auction. Bidders WILL NOT be assigned a bidder number for each auction in order to simplify the application's operation. Instead, bidders will supply their contact information during each bid placement. Each bid will be assigned a unique number for tracking purposes. Bidders will receive an email from teamgfrc@gmail.com that confirms their bid and documents the bid number. The bid number is important when checking on high bid status.

 

GFRC Online Auctions - The Online Auction Table

Following is a screen capture of the Online auction table. The format looks similar to a regular GFRC For Sale page price list table.

Please look carefully as there are three different auction statuses illustrated. The first example is an 1913-S Buffalo nickel that is queued for an upcoming auction that opens on October 12. The TPG number is available with a link back to the TPG website for checking certification. Reserves and high bids will be listed in the second to right column. The rightmost column communicates the lot's status and allows bidding.

On the second line, the 1917-D Standing Liberty quarter is currently available for bidding as an active auction. Bidding is accomplished by clicking on the shopping bag icon.

The final line in the table illustrates an 1825 Capped Bust half dollar that was part of a prior auction that is now closed. That lot did not meet the reserve.

 

GFRC Online Auctions - Three Auction Statuses Example

 

GFRC Online Auctions - Using the Bidding Screen

Clicking the shopping bag icon for a lot that is part of an active Online Auction brings about a lot bidding screen. The bidding screen is unique to that lot and presents a full description and TPG serial number. Lots are identified by TPG serial numbers or with GFRC inventory number for raw coins.

The next illustration showcases the auction lot's information including full description, reserve price, current high bid and bid number. There are three panels for entering information towards placing a bid. Bidding requires three pieces of information each time a bid is placed. .

- Name

- Email Address

- Max Bid

Once these three pieces of information are entered, please hit the Enter Bid button.

GFRC Online Auctions - Bidding Screen Example

 

Bidders will accurately enter the required information and select the Enter Bid button. A bid will be first checked for being valid. If not valid, an error message will be issued on the bidding screen. If the bid is valid, the bid will be acknowledged on a separate screen along with an email sent to the inputted email address indicating such.

 

GFRC Online Auctions - Email Bid Notification

All GFRC auction emails will be issued from "auctions@seateddimevarieties.com". The email captures the submitted name and acknowledges the maximum bid. Each bid is assigned a unique bid number. Please note that there are no bidder numbers assigned to clients. Again, each bid is assigned its unique tracking number. A link is provide to allow prompt return to the lot bidding screen which allows bidders to check if their unique bid number is the high bid.

Following is an illustration of typical Bid Notification email. Please note that the lot number is the full TPG serial number as extracted via bar code.

GFRC Online Auctions - Email Bid Notification